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Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Illegal Homeschoolers…

“A California court has ruled that several children in one home school family must be enrolled in a public school or "legally qualified" private school, and must attend, sending ripples of shock into the nation's homeschooling advocates as the family reviews its options for appeal…”

“…the case brought against Phillip and Mary Long over the education being provided to two of their eight children. They are considering an appeal to the state Supreme Court, because they have homeschooled all of their children, the oldest now 29, because of various anti-Christian influences in California's public schools.”

When I first saw the title, I naturally assumed the kids in question were being neglected and not being taught how to read, write, spell and “figure sums”. The court was just looking out for the interest of this family’s kids.Not so…

According to the appeals court:

“…the trial court had found that "keeping the children at home deprived them of situations where (1) they could interact with people outside the family, (2) there are people who could provide help if something is amiss in the children's lives, and (3) they could develop emotionally in a broader world than the parents' 'cloistered' setting.

…"

So this has NOTHING to do with the actual “education” or quality of education being provided the kids? Instead this is just a blatant attack on a family because they might not include all the “diversity”, “healthy choice”, “political correctness” crap that passes for “enriched education” in the public schools?

It looks like the two kids in question must be the youngest and are being instructed by the parents to the same standards they taught their other six children. The fact is the kids ARE getting educated!

Not according to the court:

“…judges ruled in the case involving the Longs the family failed to demonstrate "that mother has a teaching credential such that the children can be said to be receiving an education from a credentialed tutor,"

The fact that six other children in their family were successfully educated doesn’t carry any influence?

Not having a credential doesn’t mean you can’t teach. Hell, I don’t have a teaching credential and the public schools allow me, a substitute teacher, to teach your kids for a solid month before they have to replace me with a “real” teacher or, what sometimes happens, another un-credentialed substitute.

As for getting a straight answer from the DOE as to why they seem to be trying to eliminate homeschooling?

“…For years the government school establishment has been lying to parents about the law. Just this week, a Los Angeles Unified school district employee lied to a mother who wanted to homeschool, telling her you must have a license, you must be credentialed and you must follow all the state curriculum. That's three lies in one sentence."

It doesn’t look like you’d get any real kind straight answer from those in charge.

If this becomes a legal precedent, then watch for other school districts to use the ruling as a weapon to force all homeschooling families to abandon their rights as parents.